“I can play both,” Odrick said. “I think that one of the reasons the Dolphins drafting me. I can play anywhere on the D-line.”

Dolphins General Manager Jeff Ireland said the team has decided where Odrick will line up.

“We think he can play both inside and outside,” Ireland said. “I don’t want to get into where we’re gonna play the kid. I’ll let Tony and the coaches decide that.

“We’ve got a pretty good vision for him.”

The 2009 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and a first-team All-America, Odrick had 70 tackles, including 40 solos and 10 for loss, 19 quarterback hurries, five sacks, five fumble recoveries and three blocked kicks.

Miami selected Odrick with the No. 28, following a trade with the San Diego Chargers.

The Dolphins shipped the No. 12 pick to the Chargers, who selected Fresno State running back Ryan Matthews.

In return, Miami received San Diego’s first-round pick (No. 28 pick), while picking up a second-round pick (No. 40) and linebacker Tim Dobbins.

The Dolphins said they discussed trading down with four or five teams, including serious talks with two of them.

“That was important for us,” Ireland said since the team traded two second-round picks – in 2010 and 2011 – to Denver for Brandon Marshall.

The teams also swapped fourth-round picks, moving Miami from No. 110 to 126. The Dolphins also sent the No. 173 pick – one of their three sixth-round picks — to the Chargers.

To move down, the Dolphins gave up a shot at a number of players expected to be of interest to the team, including free safety Earl Thomas (No. 14, San Francisco), pass rusher Derrick Morgan (No. 16, Tennessee) and nose tackle Dan Williams (No. 26, Arizona).

“There was enough depth in the draft that there wasn’t a whole lot of difference between the players we saw at 12 and 28,” Ireland said.

To select Odrick, the Dolphins bypassed other players tied to the team leading up to the draft, including pass rushers Sergio Kindle of Texas and Jerry Hughes of TCU.

For the casual fan, this pick might come a bit out of left field, but Odrick will be a productive, multi-dimensional player that doesn’t come off the field.

“He’s a good inside pass rusher, so we think he can be a good pass rusher inside,” Ireland said. “He’s a long player, we like his length. He’s very powerful, he’s productive, he’s explosive, he’s all the things you want in a defensive lineman, and he’s versatile.

“That’s what we liked about him.”

Ireland said Odrick caught his eye Nov. 6 during Penn St visit to Northwestern: “I was thinking that is a guy I could see with us.”

Odrick, who played for the North squad in the Senior Bowl, said Dolphins coaches took notice of him when coaching the South squad in Mobile.

“I knew they had a strong feeling about me, i didn’t know how strong,” Odrick said. “Obviously it was pretty strong.